Hyderabad: Gaddam Triveni and Gaddam Mastan Rao spent ten years trying to become parents. They cycled through 13 rounds of ovulation induction and one round of intrauterine insemination at private clinics. Nothing worked.
Then they walked into Gandhi Hospital.
On Wednesday, Triveni delivered twins, a boy and a girl, through a procedure the couple paid nothing for. The state carried the entire cost: the IVF cycle, the frozen embryo transfer, the delivery, and every medicine in between. At a private hospital, the same treatment costs between Rs 10 lakh and Rs 12 lakh.
How the doctors reached a diagnosis
The couple, both agricultural labourers from Boyaguda, relocated from their village to Hyderabad to seek care. Doctors at Gandhi Hospital’s IVF Centre reviewed their history and diagnosed unexplained infertility, a category that accounts for a significant share of cases where earlier treatment has failed without a clear clinical reason.
The team initiated a single IVF cycle. After one frozen embryo transfer, Triveni conceived. Doctors later performed an elective lower segment caesarean section. Mother and newborns are reported to be in good health.
The treatment team included hospital superintendent Dr Vani, IVF Centre head Dr T Shobha, infertility specialist Dr Fathima, embryologist Dr Shiva Krishna, and nursing officer Lavanya.
A centre built in 87 days
The IVF facility at Gandhi Hospital opened in October 2023, inaugurated by then Home Minister Mahmood Ali. The Telangana government sanctioned Rs 16.5 crore across three centres — Gandhi Hospital in Secunderabad, Petlaburj Maternity Hospital, and MGM Hospital in Warangal, at Rs 5.5 crore each.
The Gandhi Hospital centre finished construction in 87 days, against a planned timeline of 150 days.
The facility operates across three zones. The non-sterile zone holds counselling rooms with audio-visual recording, an ultrasound room, and a pre- or post-operative ward. The sterile zone houses the IVF operation theatre and embryology laboratory, both equipped with 3,400 CFM air handling units running 24 hours a day.
The population numbers that shaped the policy
Telangana’s decision to fund fertility treatment reflects a demographic calculation the state can no longer ignore.
The state’s Total Fertility Rate (TFR) has dropped to around 1.5 to 1.6, well below the replacement level of 2.1 required to sustain a stable population. This is also lower than the national average, estimated at around 1.9 to 2.0.
A slight rural-urban gap persists, with fertility rates at roughly 1.6 in rural areas compared to 1.5 in urban centres.
Projections indicate deeper structural shifts ahead. The number of newborns in the state is expected to decline by nearly 25% between 2021 and 2036, raising concerns of a future labour shortage. The working-age population, particularly those in the 25–29 age group, is projected to shrink by close to 20% over the same period.
At the same time, Telangana is ageing rapidly. The population aged 80 and above is expected to increase by more than 80% by 2036. Overall population growth is also slowing sharply, with projections suggesting it could fall to near-zero levels, around 0.3 per thousand, by 2031–2035, potentially leading to a declining population within the next decade or two.
Experts attribute the trend to a mix of factors, including delayed marriages, lifestyle changes, pollution, dietary shifts, and improvements in female education and workforce participation. Infertility is also emerging as a significant concern, now estimated to affect one in seven couples in the region.
In response, the Telangana government has begun recalibrating its population policies, starting IVF centres across government hospitals in the state.
What the minister said
Health minister Damodar Rajanarasimha, who congratulated the medical team following Wednesday’s delivery, said the government intends to keep advanced reproductive care free at government hospitals for poor and middle-class families.
“The IVF centres established at Gandhi and Petlaburj hospitals were helping many families access advanced fertility treatment without financial burden,” the minister said.
For Triveni and Mastan Rao, that access translated into two children after a decade of waiting.
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